Lyrics of a song speak volumes about it. Although in most circumstances the audience might be swept off by the melody as well as the rhythm of a song, the message it passes remains rooted in their minds as well as hearts. Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday is a song that has a hidden meaning, one that speaks metaphorically about the lynching of the blacks in the southern America, especially in the first half of the 20th century.
The imagery used in the song portrays the distasteful brutality of racism, a factor that made the blacks in America undergo great torture. The words, carefully chosen display blood and the great suffering they endured while they were at the mercy of Americans. The song was meant to expose the brutality of the action of the anti-communist as well as the racist individuals, most of who inhabited the southern part of the country. The song was not only meant to expose the brutality of racism, a factor that the artist herself felt gnawing her bones, but it was also a bold undertaking to show evil that existed in society. The above is demonstrated by the fearless presentation of the song by Billie, even though some of the publishers were afraid of publishing her work, which was considered very sensitive at the time ("Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit", 2017).
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Being the backbone of civil rights movement, African American women, and especially those who lived around the year 1964 had a few lessons to learn from Billie Holiday, a figure that had struggled through racism to become one of the most coveted jazz music black artist. Through her hard and arduous childhood without an education, Billie served as an example to the Black American women who fought for their rights. Although she had previously been a prostitute, a factor that greatly lowered her dignity, through her music and actions, she emancipated people of the cruelty that racism had. Doing the above without fear, she became a role model for the rest of the black women of her time.
References
Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit . (2017). YouTube . Retrieved 9 March 2017, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4ZyuULy9zs
